Shadow's End
by Alex Lunaris
Summary: A young girl by the name of Ginny Weasley falls in love with one of the least expected people. One man will try and stand in her way- but will his hatred be enough to conquer their love?
1. Chapter One

On a cold late February afternoon, Virginia Weasley sat alone at the   
Gryffindor table in the Great Hall of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and   
Wizardry. With her fork, she unwillingly poked at a piece of pork and   
reflected her relationships at her school. She really didn't have any friends   
to speak of; she only annoyed her brother and his friends from time to time.   
No one paid her much mind, she was just the wild flame-haired loner who   
everyone avoided if they wanted to maintain a social status at all.  
Ginny's birthday had been earlier that week, whence she had become   
sixteen years of age. Her vivid red hair had curled, and when dry fell   
halfway down her back, but when was wet and stretched out was halfway to her   
knees. At the moment, her tresses were pulled up in a ponytail halfway pulled   
through, but one lock had escaped, and she sat there, playing with her food   
and pulling at her corkscrew hair, letting her mind wander off and take her   
to faraway lands.  
Ginny sensed that someone was looking at her, and her muscles immediately   
tightened. She slowly looked up, and her eyes fell upon a Slytherin. His name   
was Gregory Goyle, a sixth-year, one year ahead of her. He was looking at her   
in an almost kind way, if such a large and completely idiotic boy were   
capable of being gentle. As soon as their eyes met, he quickly averted his,   
but Ginny kept looking at him. There was something strange in the way Goyle   
was acting-strange, but not undesirable.  
The next week, as Ginny headed to her Divination class, she noticed a   
large and bulky figure hurry by her, dropping a book and not even noticing.   
Ginny, carefully juggling her own textbooks, picked up the book and called   
after him. He didn't notice, so she shrugged and headed up to Divination,   
where she was not looking forward to spending an hour in an overheated room   
filled with maddening fumes.  
  
In class, as Professor Trelawney was explaining the importance and fine   
art of Crystal Balls, Ginny slipped out the book the boy had dropped, and   
examined it. It wa fine leather; an aqua-colored book. She opened the cover,   
and on the left hand side read, "This Diary Belongs To:". She shut the diary   
immediately, knowing that it was wrong to read another's diary, but she   
decided that she might as well find out to whom it belonged, so she might   
return it to the rightful owner. Cautiously opening the leather book again,   
she deciphered the chicken-scratch handwriting (itypical boy,/i she   
thought), and gasped when she read, "Gregory Goyle."  
Once again shutting the containment of the poor boy's life, she struggled   
mentally with whether or not to read it. iWell, it wouldn't hurt... He'd   
never know... No, that's wrong! But still... Oh, maybe just to figure out   
what he was thinking when our eyes met last week at dinner.../i She opened   
the diary once more, before immediately shutting it. i I can't believe I   
almost did that! That's incredibly rude and invading on the poor thing's   
life! I'll just return it to him today at dinner.../i  
  
Meanwhile, a helpless young boy was turning up his dormitory looking for   
a certain lost possession of his.  
"What, Gregory, did you lose your blanky?" came the drawl of Goyle's   
leader, a fellow Slytherin sixth year by the name of Draco Malfoy.  
"No, Draco, it's just that my diary has gone missing! I can't find it   
anywhere," mumbled Gregory, embarrassed, now turning over pillows.  
"What do you want to keep a diary for? To put your thick thoughts in?   
Really, Goyle, I didn't expect you to be literate."  
Gregory blushed, as he still searched for his lost diary, and shrugged.   
Crabbe, his best friend, walked up and comforted him. "Don't worry, Gregory.   
Just give it a rest. Maybe it'll turn up later."   
Heeding his friend's advice, Goyle finally gave up, sitting down on his   
bed, wondering where the heck his diary could have gone. He finally just   
dropped it, and went down to dinner, where there would at least be food, a   
comfort in his life.  
  
Ginny arrived in the Great Hall early, the leather book safely in her   
pocket, ready to be returned to its owner. She watched every entering soul,   
searching for the one to whom the diary belonged. Finally, she spotted Goyle,   
entering the Great Hall with Vincent Crabbe and Draco Malfoy, his two   
friends. Ginny began to rise, but felt the courage drain out of her as she   
saw the ones that were with him. Malfoy would just laugh at her, and she   
wouldn't be able to talk to him. She decided just to eat up and wait until he   
left to confront Goyle and return to him his diary.  
She nearly missed him as he quietly got up and left to head for his   
common room. Ginny looked up from eating her food alone, and seeing Goyle get   
up alone to go back to his dormitory, she hurriedly excused herself and flew   
to the door, exiting right behind him.  
Out in the hall, Ginny tapped him on the shoulder. She saw Goyle jump   
ever so slightly before whirling around, and upon seeing her, watched his   
complexion quickly turn a scarlet red, and ask quietly, "What do you want?"  
Ginny was startled by this. She had expected him to say something like   
that, but she hadn't expected him to say it so... /i. "I..." she   
began, but when she looked up into his eyes, she forgot what she was going to   
say.   
Regaining her senses, she took his hand and slipping her other hand into   
her pocket and extracting the diary, she slipped it into his hand. Upon   
seeing the expression of his face, she whispered quietly, "Don't worry, I   
never read it." Finding herself extremely embarrassed, she turned around and   
ran away, but stopped when he called after her. As Ginny turned around to   
face him, Goyle called out to her, "Thank you."  
A mere nod on Ginny's part, and she again turned around and fled back to   
the Gryffindor Common Room. She stopped in front of the portrait, and said   
breathlessly, "Con Agua." The fat lady in the pink dress that was guarding   
Gryffindor Tower smiled kindly and slid over, allowing the fifth year inside   
the secret walls of the warm common room.  
Ginny made her way up to her dormitory, and plopped down on her bed. She   
smiled at the ceiling, wondering what exactly his diary had said. Ginny   
flipped over onto her stomach and buried her face into her pillow, quickly   
falling into a sound slumber.  
  
The next morning, Ginny's eyes fluttered open, and she sighed. She'd had   
a dream, a wonderful dream that she had had many times before. She had been   
in a meadow, a beautiful green meadow, and she was with a boy. She was not   
certain who this boy was, but she was certain that is was someone whom she   
cared for very, very much.  
The two had been running and laughing together, in fact, she thought, the   
boy had been chasing her. It wasn't like he was trying to hurt her in chasing   
her, but more like he was chasing her playfully. Chasing her like they were   
very close friends. Finally, at the end of her dream, he had managed to catch   
up with her, and tackle her gently. Then she woke up.  
She often wondered what it might be like, to be like that girl from that   
dream. To have someone to play with, who would actually consider hanging   
around with her. She undid her hair, and attempted to run a comb through it.   
Even if she was a social outcast, she might as well have looked nice in the   
process of scaring first years.  
It was a Saturday, and by the looks of it, it was going to be a beautiful   
day. iA perfect day for a walk,/i thought Ginny, and she started to put   
on her robes before realizing that she had slept in her clothes. Shrugging,   
she made her way out of the castle and out onto the grounds. Spring had   
officially come, and Ginny planned on taking advantage of it.  
Twirling around with herself in the early morning sunshine, she spun   
until she became so dizzy that she collapsed among the dewy grass, laughing   
to herself. She sat up, and made a daisy chain, carrying on a conversation   
with herself until she heard another voice, a male voice, murmuring to   
himself as well.  
The voice came from not too far off, just on the other side of a large   
oak tree a few hundred yards away, so Ginny graciously stood up, wiping the   
wet grass off of her robes. Ginny walked over to the tree, remaining on her   
side of it, listening to the voice. It was murmuring quickly and softly to   
itself, and as she listened to the harsh rasping, she discovered that the   
voice belonged to no other than Gregory Goyle.  
Building up her confidence, Ginny slowly walked around to the other side   
of the tree, where Goyle sat with his diary open on his lap. Silently she sat   
down beside him, and he was so absorbed in his own thoughts that he didn't   
even notice Ginny's presence until she said, "A beautiful morning."  
Ginny smiled as Goyle jumped, and looking over at her as he shut the blue   
leather book quickly. "Er, yeah."  
Ginny turned her head to look at him and she said, "I hope I find you   
well?"  
Goyle looked stunned as if no one had ever asked how /i felt.   
"Yeah. Yeah, I'm all right. You?"  
Ginny looked out towards the lake on the grounds in front of her. "I   
guess I'm as good as a social outcast can be," she said, sighing. But then   
she looked over at Goyle and saw that he had a somewhat pitying look on his   
face, and she laughed.  
"What?" he asked, thinking he was being made fun of.  
"Oh, it's just I've never seen you show any emotion before," Ginny said.  
"Well, I'm not really one to show emotions..."  
Ginny was surprised that Goyle knew what the word emotion meant, even   
more so to find that he had them. It was as he had said, he wasn't one to   
show emotions.  
  
The two new friends sat on the lawn and spoke softly to each other as the   
dew dried, and a beautiful spring morning dawned. "Well, Gregory," Ginny said   
an hour later, for Gregory was his first name, as she felt the first pangs of   
hunger in her stomach. "I don't know about you, but I'm about ready for some   
food." Suddenly, she jumped to her feet as Goyle pocketed his diary. "Race   
you to the Entrance Hall," she called, as she darted off towards the large   
oak doors of Hogwarts. Goyle lumbered clumsily behind her, not being anywhere   
as agile as she was. By the time he caught up with Ginny at the doors, they   
were both out of breath and laughing.  
As they both entered the Entrance Hall, Goyle straightened his robes and   
Ginny pulled her hair out of its ponytail, shaking her head so her curly   
locks fell all around her. Goyle felt himself staring at her, she was so   
beautiful. As Ginny was running her fingers through her hair, she looked up   
at Goyle and smiled a perfect smile, one he couldn't resist returning.  
Silently but mutually in that look between the two, they promised never   
to tell a soul of their newfound friendship. If anyone should discover of the   
secret relationship between the Gryffindor and the Slytherin, they would both   
lose what little portion of social status they ever possessed. They each were   
smarter than that, so they kept their mouths shut, though whenever passing   
each other in the halls, they would smile at each other, and they frequently   
met out on the lawn.  
  
Finally, Ginny Weasley had found a friend in whom she could confide in,   
and Gregory Goyle had someone whom he might talk to that wouldn't laugh at   
him or mock him. Both were content with their relationship and delighted in   
having a secret friend. 


	2. Chapter Two

One morning as she sat out on the lawn with Goyle, Ginny had her arms   
wrapped around her legs which were tucked up close to her body. She was   
sitting next to Goyle, who was leaning against "their" oak tree, and Ginny   
confided in him how she had never had a real, true friend who wouldn't just   
turn around and stab her in the back. She expected him to mock her, but   
instead he nodded.  
"I know exactly what you mean," he said rather sheepishly.  
"You do?" Ginny gasped; she had never known that Gregory was in any   
discontent with his Slytherin friends.  
Nodding slowly, Goyle said, "Draco isn't really a friend; he's more of a   
master than a friend to me. And Vincent, you know, Crabbe, he's too thick in   
the head to understand when I talk about how lonely I get sometimes. Everyone   
else thinks that I'm just as thick as Vincent and can't string two words   
together. They never give me a chance."  
Ginny mulled his words over while playing with her hair. "I guess   
everyone just avoids me because they've known me for five years, and think   
I'm a complete reject and social outcast. I don't mind really, I'd rather   
have all those self-obsessed girls leave me alone than have them completely   
ruin my life. They've already ruined it enough as it is with their horrible   
gossip and false rumors. They don't understand what it's like to be me: the   
younger sister of six wonderful and heroic and funny boys who came before me!   
'Oh, it's just another Weasley,' they say. 'She'll be no trouble; marvelous   
and perfect and just like her older brothers!' They don't consider whether or   
not I /i to be like my brothers, they just automatically assume that   
I do.  
"Of course, it's not easy to follow right after Ron, best friend to the   
ifamous, perfect/i Harry Potter. I don't even like Harry that much, he's   
just my brother's best friend, so I have to be nice to him."  
Goyle looked utterly confused. "I thought you-you had a crush on him..."   
he said, his voice trailing off. Ginny had no idea how hard it was for him to   
say that. To his relief, she merely laughed at the statement.  
"Oh, Gregory! That was in my first year. I was young and impressionable;   
I thought that anyone as good and famous as the great Harry Potter   
/i be as wonderful as he was made out to be. But Gregory, he's   
really not like that. He isn't like that at all! In real life, he's rude,   
conceited, and all-around really mean to me. But Ginny's feelings don't   
count, Ginny's only the daft younger sister of his best friend Ron. You know,   
Gregory, I think Malfoy has quite a /i reason to hate Harry. There's   
really not much of him that's likable at all, except for how famous he is,   
and I don't blame anyone for being jealous of him for that! Why, Harry   
doesn't very well ideserve /i to be famous, did you know that?"  
Goyle had been leaning against a tree, sinking in every word she said.   
When she finished her small speech, he blinked rapidly. "I really don't know   
how Malfoy really feels about H- I mean, Potter. As I said before, he's more   
of a master than a friend. Masters don't really confide in their servants-or   
should I say slaves?"  
Ginny was startled by the way that Goyle had spoken of Malfoy. "Why do   
you say such a thing? I thought you and Crabbe were devoted to him or   
something like that?" she asked inquisitively.  
"Oh, no, Ginny. It is your turn to have the big misconception. For   
generations and generations all of the Crabbes and Goyles to be something   
like bodyguards to the Malfoys. Also, all of the Crabbes and Goyles follow   
each Malfoy into the..." his voice trailed off suddenly, and he realized that   
he had said too much.   
"Into the what, Gregory?"  
"I shouldn't have said that, Ginny. Forget I ever said that."  
But Ginny couldn't help but feel curious. "Come on, Gregory, tell me. You   
can trust me-you know that."  
For the first time in their short friendship, Goyle turned nasty. "I told   
you to forget it, Ginny, so forget it!"  
Seeing the fierce look in his eyes, Ginny grew scared. "All right, all   
right, no need to lose your temper there, Gregory," she joked, though inside   
she was quaking at how rough he had been.   
Goyle hung his head. "I'm sorry, Ginny," he murmured. "It's just   
something few people would understand. I can't discuss it with anyone outside   
my family. My family being the rest of the Goyles, the Crabbes, and the   
Malfoys."  
Ginny looked into Goyle eyes and saw in his deep brown orbs that he truly   
was sorry. "It's all right," she said. "I was foolish to press the matter as   
I did, I'm sorry as well. You really have nothing to be sorry about."  
Goyle merely nodded, and somehow to his great surprise discovered that   
Ginny's hand had entertwined itself with his. He looked at her, and she   
smiled at him. He smiled back, and they both stared out towards the lake.   
Ginny laid her head on his shoulder, and she whispered to him, "Please,   
Gregory, stay my friend forever. I don't know what I would do without you."  
It felt good to Goyle that he was needed, and it wasn't for help in   
getting out of a good scrap. He smiled to himself as he said, "I'll be your   
friend for forever and more."  
His last three words were echoed off of Ginny's lips, "Forever and more."  
Ginny awoke later that day to find that she had fallen asleep out on the   
lawn, leaning against Goyle. She blinked her eyes open, and looked at her   
best friend, who was writing furiously in his diary. As soon as he felt her   
movement, Goyle shut the blue book and smiled at her. "Good afternoon,   
sleeping beauty," he said, playfully teasing her. He knew she thought she   
looked horrible, and he always made it a point to comment on how pretty she   
was, and she would always wrinkle her nose at him. This, time, though, she   
gave the small smile of a person awaking from a peaceful slumber who had been   
dreaming of someone they had cared for.  
Ginny laid back on the warm grass and stretched. "What time is it?" she   
asked Goyle, who checked his watch.  
"Two thirty."  
She sat straight up, looking around, a few blades of grass stuck in her   
curly hair. "Gregory, is it really that late?" she asked as Goyle picked the   
grass out of her flaming locks. He nodded to her, and she stood up, brushing   
off her robes. "They'll be worrying about me," she said as she made herself   
presentable.  
Goyle looked at her questioningly. "Who will?" he asked, quite curious as   
to who would care about where she was, if she claimed to be such an outcast.  
Ginny shook her head. "Never you mind," she said. "The point is, I must   
hurry back to the common room. They'll be wondering where I am!" After these   
last words, she knelt down beside Goyle, and hesitated before leaning towards   
him, and then leaning forward even farther and kissing him quickly. He looked   
very shocked, and she kissed him again before saying breathlessly, "I must go   
now. I'll talk to you later." With that, she had disappeared inside the   
castle before he had the chance to say another word.  
  
Ginny arrived in front of the fat lady within five minutes and quickly   
said the password before hurrying inside. There, awaiting her arrival by the   
fire sat the three people she feared most in her short life. Harry Potter,   
Hermione Granger, and her brother, Ron Weasley.  
Harry was the first to stand up and speak. "Where have you been, Ginny?   
Why didn't you tell us you would be gone for so long? Who have you been with,   
girl? Speak!" he shouted at her as she quivered by the wall.  
Ron stepped up beside Harry. "Come on, Ginny. You heard the man. He wants   
to know where you've been, so tell him!" Ginny's brother shouted angrily at   
her.  
"I-I fell asleep in the Library," she said, speaking the partial truth.   
"I was studying for my Potions exam. It's going to be horrible this year- I   
just know it is!"  
Ginny's feeble explanation satisfied Hermione, one to always get a head   
start on studying, but this was not enough for the great Harry Potter. "Exams   
aren't until June!" he shouted. "It's only the beginning of March at this   
moment!"  
At that time, Hermione, the only one who had ever been kind to her came   
up and touched Harry's arm. "Harry, you remember the fifth year Potions exam.   
It was horrible, even for me. She has a good excuse."  
Even though obviously Harry was not satisfied, he calmed down at the   
touch of the one whom he loved. He put his arm around her and glared at   
Ginny. "If you're so eager to get a head start on studying for your exam,   
then how come you fell asleep?" he questioned her, a trace of anger still in   
his voice.  
"I-I was just so tired! I stayed up very late last night studying as   
well, and then today I just drifted off. I'm so sorry, Harry, I really am. It   
won't happen again."  
Removing his arm from around Hermione, Harry walked up to Ginny, getting   
right up in her face and spitting as he spoke. "Sorry's not enough, little   
girl. And I'm not going to bother to take your word for it that it'll never   
happen again. I'm going to make an image in your mind to make /i   
that it'll never happen again!" And with that, he reached out with his hand   
and slapped her. Ginny's head snapped to the side, her cheek growing cold   
against the stone wall.  
Harry took a couple of steps back to get a good look at her, and Ginny   
used the room to slide down the wall to the floor, where she buried her face   
in her knees. Ron and Hermione watched quietly as Harry kicked Ginny hard in   
the shins while saying, "Come on, girl stand up! Receive your punishment like   
a true woman!" When Ginny did not stand up, Harry grabbed a clump of her   
fiery red hair, and yanked it up. Ginny screamed as she was pulled to her   
feet. Harry, still holding onto her hair, got right up in her face and   
whispered harshly, "The next time I tell you to get up, you get up.   
Understood?" He demanded sharply.  
Ginny did not answer, but merely sobbed quietly, her scalp burning where   
he had pulled her hair. Harry yanked her hair again. As she yelped, he   
growled, "I said, is that understood?" This time, the tears pouring down her   
cheeks, Ginny nodded. Disgusted, Harry let go of her hair and pushed her   
against her wall. There was a soft ithud /i as Ginny's head hit the stone   
wall and she once again sank to the floor, this time unconscious. 


	3. Chapter Three

(A/N: Many special thanks to dannysdashdollie, kittydopter, Lolita, livinvonkerverse, and bmw for your reviews. They're greatly appreciated, and y'all are great to me!)  
  
Ginny awoke later that evening in her own bed, in her own dormitory.   
Sitting on the edge of her bed was Hermione, tending to Ginny's bruises with   
a little bit of magic. Ginny groaned. Her head was throbbing and it hurt her   
to even breathe. She managed a small smile to Hermione, who was rewrapping a   
bandage on Ginny's head, the only thing holding down her wild firey curls.  
"I'm sorry this always happens," breathed Hermione at last when she had   
finished tending to Ginny. "Harry's just prone to losing his temper lately.   
You know how much stress he's been going through. He's only sixteen, and he's   
trying to take on the troubles of the world, if you know what I mean."  
"It's alright for you- you're his girlfriend. Big heroes hardly ever beat   
up on the ones they love so dearly as he loves you," grumbled Ginny.  
Hermione looked extremely guilty as she patted Ginny's knee before remem  
bering a goblet sitting on Ginny's bedside. She reached over and handed it to   
her little patient.   
"Here you go, Gin. Drink it all down. It's a dreamless sleeping potion. I   
had to get special permission from McGonagall to get the book with the potion   
recipe in it out of the Restricted Section."  
Ginny took the goblet full of some foul smelling substance and she raised   
it in a toast to Hermione before swallowing it all down, her nose wrinkled.   
When she had finished drinking the foul potion, Hermione took the goblet   
from Ginny. Winking, she said, "Well, now that's taken care of, better return   
the goblet to the kitchens before the house elves lose it again because they   
can't find one goblet." With that, she gave Ginny one last smile and exited   
the dormitory. Ginny tried not to concentrate on her pain as soon the potion   
kicked in, and the world she knew faded out of existence and into the world   
of the dark and she slumbered on, only this time her dreams were not   
possessed by her best friend.  
  
The next morning, Ginny's eyes fluttered open to reveal the start of a   
new, bright and beautiful day. But the way Ginny's head ached and she could   
hardly bear to even keep her eyes open, the day wasn't going to be quite as   
bright as the sun outside. She managed to dress herself and go down to   
breakfast, although from the way every muscle in her body was tight and ached   
it would seem like she could hardly lift a feather. She ate her breakfast   
quickly, and finding that she had time to spare before her first lesson, she   
went out onto the lawn, to stretch and possibly work out some of the knots in   
her muscles before she fell asleep in her first class. History of Magic. Not   
like she'd miss anything important, anyways.  
  
Out on the lawn, the grass was green and all the flowers were in bloom,   
revealing the fact that spring was upon them. The first thing Ginny did was   
pull her right arm across her chest and holding it there for ten seconds,   
although it pained her. She did the same thing with her left arm, and then   
brought her right one up behind her head, holding it there for ten seconds,   
and again the same with her left arm. She proceeded in this manner with every   
stretch she knew, slowly bit by bit reawakening her body and making it usable.  
By the time she had finished stretching, she still had some spare moments   
before History of Magic, so she walked over to the old oak tree where she and   
Gregory often sat, and had in fact sat the very day before, and was surprised   
to see that he was out there as well.  
"Gregory," she said, startling him as well. "What are you doing out here   
this early in the morning?" He shrugged, and patted the ground beside him   
before taking her hand and pulling her down beside him. Ginny noticed that   
though once again his diary was open on his lap, he had not bothered to close   
it this day.  
"Good morning, Ginny," he said in his roughish voice, smiling at her   
broadly. It was Ginny's turn to return the smile.  
"And a good morning to you, Gregory. I trust you slept well?"  
Goyle looked Ginny over, seeing some minor bruises from Harry that   
Hermione couldn't get rid of, but merely cocked an eyebrow and said, "I slept   
like a log. And yourself?"  
"I slept perfectly well, thank you for asking," Ginny said, not revealing   
the circumstances under which she slept so well.  
Goyle checked his watch, then cursed under his breath. "Look, Ginny," he   
said. "We've got five minutes until classes begin. Can we talk later?" Ginny   
nodded, wishing there was more time and cursing the fact that the time-stop   
spell was so complicated. The two stood up together, and Goyle kissed her   
quickly before the hurried up to the castle, hand-in-hand.  
  
Little did either of them know, but they were being watched. Someone had   
followed Ginny out onto the lawn when she left breakfast so quickly, and had   
watched her stretch and had followed her behind the oak tree. Someone had   
seen and heard her speaking with Gregory Goyle, and someone had seen the two   
kiss. Someone had seen them head back to the castle hand in hand, and someone   
saw them kiss one last time before heading back into the castle and resuming   
their normal lives.  
  
Someone by the name of Harry Potter.  
After her day had started so wonderfully by surprisingly meeting Goyle   
out on the lawn that morning, Ginny had spent the rest of the day floating   
around Hogwarts, and she almost smiled at her brother as she passed him in   
the hall. Almost.  
All of Ginny's classmates wondered what the heck was wrong with her when,   
as she walked into History of Magic, she smiled warmly at the ghost of   
Professor Binns, and made a lively discussion with him about the Great Goblin   
Revolution. Ginny bounced back to her seat as Binns called for the class   
attention, and spent the entire lesson scribbling notes down furiously as if   
she had done nothing but that from her very first History of Magic lesson.  
The rest of Ginny's day passed basically like that, and she was even   
quite curteous to her fellow classmates (most of whom looked disgusted that   
she had even spoken to them, though she neither noticed nor cared), and all   
the time she thought of Gregory Goyle.  
At dinner, Ginny waltzed into the Great Hall, fairly glowing from having   
such a wonderful day. She sat down at the Gryffindor table, and smiled at her   
classmates, fully hungry from viewing life from such a different perspective.   
Harry quietly slipped into the Great Hall after Ginny, watching her   
suspiciously as she chatted gaily with everyone around her, sometimes   
glancing at the Slytherin table, absolutely beaming.  
Harry sat down across from Ginny, and glared at her. He softly whispered   
to Ginny, "Did you have a good day, /i He spat out the word   
"Virginia" as if it were some horrible word he hardly dared to speak.  
Something in the way he asked her about her day made shivers run down   
Ginny's spine. She softly whispered back to him, "I had a fine day, Harry,   
and yourself?"  
Harry narrowed his eyes at Ginny, as if he deeply mistrusted her. "Don't   
play coy with me, little girl. I know what you've been up to."  
Fear ran through Ginny and froze her as though she had been petrified   
like the students had been four years before. The next words she spoke, she   
spoke stiffly, as if she were mechanical. "I don't know what you're talking   
about, Harry," she whispered.  
Anger and utter hate flashed dangerously in Harry's eyes. "I think you   
know exactly what I'm talking about, Ginny Weasley," he spat out at her, his   
voice rising now.  
"Oh, Harry, don't make a scene," whispered Ginny so that everyone would   
stop staring at them, but Harry would not play along.  
"I can make a bloody scene if I want to!" he yelled at her, standing up   
now. "I can bloody well make a bloody scene, and you ought to know better   
than to tell me what to do!" Before storming out of the Great Hall and up to   
Gryffindor Tower, Harry leaned down right in front of Ginny's face and   
whispered so that no one else could hear, "I want you to finish your dinner   
as quickly as you finished breakfast," he sneered, "and then come up and meet   
me in the Common Room. Understood?" And this time, Ginny was wise enough to no  
d calmly and just watch him storm out.  
Ginny quickly finished her dinner, clucked disapprovingly about Harry not   
finishing his, and made her way out of the Great Hall without making eye   
contact with Gregory. She was much too scared to look into his eyes.  
  
When she arrived in the Gryffindor Common Room, Harry was pacing in front   
of the fire, deep in thought. When he saw her come in, he barked, "What took   
you so long?" Ginny merely shrugged, which was obviously not enough for him.   
"I asked you a question, Ginny Weasley, now answer it!"  
"If you must know, what took me so long to finish dinner was the fact   
that I actually ate it, which is more than I can say for /i people!"   
she exclaimed hotly, letting her temper get the best of her, though she   
immediatelky regretted it.  
"How dare you speak to me that way, you foolish girl," Harry snarled at   
her. But suddenly he stopped and smirked. "You know where the power lies in   
this conversation, Ginny," he said, seeming almost friendly. He advance upon   
the poor helpless girl, and Ginny backed up until she was against the wall   
she had been against the night before. "Tell me Ginny, tell us all," he waved   
to the empty common room, "Where does the power lie in this conversation? Be   
a good girl Ginny, and tell me who is the most powerful wizard in this   
conversation? Tell me, Ginny! Tell me!" he yelled in her face.  
The poor young witch had no choice but to quietly whimper, "You do,   
Harry."  
Harry smiled wildly at the youngest Weasley child, still in her face, and   
he said, "Well, who'd have thought it? The daft young girl has brains in her   
after all," and he rapped on her head with his knuckles, none too lightly.  
Ginny whimpered once more. Harry took her by the shoulders and shook her.   
"What was that, girl?" he yelled at her. "What did you say?"  
"I-I didn't say anything, Harry," stammered the frightened young woman.  
Harry sat down in a comfy armchair by the fire and sipped a steaming   
butterbeer which he conjured. "I have decided to set a new rule for you,   
dearest Virginia. I have decided that in public, you may call me Harry, but   
when it is just the two of us," he got a malicious glimmer in his eyes, and   
they roved over Ginny's body, taking in her every curve so she felt naked,   
and finished, "You are to call me Master Harry. Understood?" He glared at   
Ginny as he said that last word, and laughed when Ginny's eyes fell to the   
ground as she said in a barely audible voice, "Yes-- Master Harry."  
Harry laughed evilly, and cocked his ear toward her. "What was that,   
Ginny? I couldn't quite hear you."  
"Yes, Master Harry," she said, this time a little bit louder.  
"I can't quite hear you, love, one more time, what did you say?" he said   
taunting her, egging her onward, so he may have an excuse to inflict his   
horrible and painful wrath.  
"I said, 'Yes, Master Harry'!" yelled Ginny, who finally caved and took a   
running start and rammed her fist into Harry's sternum.  
The result was none too pleasant for Harry, though Ginny knew she would   
regret it instantly. Harry dropped his butterbeer upon the carpet, and fell   
forward, onto his knees, where he promptly threw up. Wiping his mouth, he   
glared up at Ginny. "You'll pay for that, Weasley," he snarled, getting to   
his feet. "You'll pay for that!" Once again, Ginny found herself against the   
wall, with Harry's fist now finding it's way into /i sternum, then a   
slap across her face, then taking her by the shoulders and slamming her head   
against the wall.  
Once again, Ginny found the world she knew growing dimmer and farther and   
farther away, as her body recieved more and more pain, more and more abuse,   
and with every growing second, her hate for her brother's best friend   
increased, as the world that she knew grew farther and farther away, and   
finally she sunk into the black unconscious, the only place where her poor   
body received rest. 


	4. Chapter Four

Shadow's End  
  
Chapter Four  
  
Confrontation  
  
Ginny reluctantly awoke later that night to hear Harry storming about down in the Common Room. Someone, most likely Hermione, had once again gently dressed her for bed and slipped her into it, gently, so not to disturb Ginny's escape. Ginny still ached, though this time not so badly, -Maybe I'm becoming immune to him,- she thought, but enough to keep her to her bed. She concluded her thoughts in order to listen to what Harry had to say.  
  
"Hermione, did you hear me right? I said, she's dating a Slytherin! Even worse, the Slytherin in question is -Gregory Goyle,- Malfoy's right-hand man!" he spat out, thoroughly disgusted with Ginny.  
  
"Harry," began Hermione gently, not wanting to wake Ginny, though that was not needed. "Harry, she's only a girl. Do you remember how disgusted and jealous Ron was when we first went out?"  
  
"Hey-" Ron began, but was cut off by a glance from Hermione.  
  
"Harry, my point is, when you're in love, you're in love, and you can't do anything about it." With that, she slipped her arms around Harry's waist and kissed him. "You know that, Darling. Don't you?" she asked him.  
  
Harry nodded, but still protested. "But, he's a Slytherin! "  
  
Hermione kissed Harry again. "I know Harry, I know. That's what makes it all the stranger, but love is love. And we're in love, too, you know." she said, kissing him once more.  
  
"Oh, spare me and get a room," Ron muttered. Hermione just laughed and went to sit down.  
  
Harry started pacing in front of the fireplace again. "But, she can't be in love- He's a Slytherin!"  
  
"Love happens in funny ways, dear. Remember that."  
  
"I know, but what if he's just using her? What if Malfoy is just telling him to use Ginny to get to me? I don't want her to be used!"  
  
"Bullshit," Ron snapped, standing up. "You don't care if she's being used, all you care about is whether or not she's being used to get to you! All you care about is you! You don't even think of anyone else! You just want to run someone's life because yours isn't going the way you want it to, so you pick on my little sister and make her quake with fear at the very sight of you! Well I'm sick of it, Harry. You aren't going to boss my little sister around any more, not if I can help it!" With that, he made his way up to Ginny's dormitory, leaving a thunderstruck Harry behind him.  
  
Ginny's eyes snapped shut when she heard Ron coming up the stairs. She fluttered them open when Ron came in. Ron smiled gingerly at her and came in and sat on the empty bed beside Ginny's. "What time is it?" Ginny asked cautiously- she could hardly speak, I think he hit me in the throat at one point...  
  
Ron looked at his watch. "6:30, but the rest of the house knows better than to come up if Harry's in one of his moods."  
  
"Do-do they all know what he does?"  
  
Ron gravely nodded. "They're all pretty disgusted with him, and me and Hermione for not stopping him. But Ginny, I won't let him hurt you anymore, alright. I won't let him hurt you." Then Ron did a very strange thing-something he hadn't done often before. He leaned over and gave his little sister a hug- a light one, being careful of her bruises, but a hug. Ginny began to cry.  
  
"I guess you know now. I guess the whole house-no, the whole school knows by now! They all know it, right? Right?!"  
  
Ron sighed, and shook his head. "No, Ginny. They don't know. Just you, me, Harry, Hermione and Goyle," he cringed at the word, "know. No one else. Hermione and I are going to do our best to make sure that no one finds out, either." He took Ginny's left hand in his. "I promise Ginny- I'll protect you. I'll keep you safe from all of it. I swear." He then leaned down and kissed Ginny's cheek, and stood up to leave. "Get plenty of rest, Gin Gin, you'll be needing it." As he turned to go, Ginny stopped him.  
  
"Ron," she said. He stopped and turned around, smiling sadly at Ginny. "Ron, I-I love you," Ginny stammered, not knowing what his reaction would be.   
  
He just smiled and said, "I love you too, Ginny. I love you too."  
  
Ginny sighed happily and rolled over, immediately sinking into much needed rest for her weary bones.  
  
In the next week, Ginny concentrated more and more on avoiding Gregory Goyle than she had ever done with anyone in her entire life. She was afraid that if Harry even saw them in the same corridor together he might lose it again, and then she'd be in trouble. She ate her breakfasts early and quickly, and never went out on the lawn again, lest he might be there. Any time she wasn't eating or in a lesson she spent in her dormitory, either studying or reading Muggle books, which was a particular hobby of hers.  
  
One morning at breakfast, a barn owl swooped down and delivered her a letter. She recognized the chickenscratch on the envelope, and her heart beat faster until she thought it would burst out of her chest. What would he say? She didn't dare to open it should Harry see it and read it, but instead she pocketed it and saved it to read when she went back to her dormitory. She finished her breakfast extra-quickly and hurried back up to her dormitory to read Gregory's letter.  
  
She opened it and read:  
  
-Dear Ginny,  
  
I hope I find you well. Listen, you've been acting really strangely lately. If I didn't know better, I'd think you were avoiding me, Ginny. You haven't been out on the lawn at all, and you know that that would be exactly where you could find me. Does it have anything to do with last week Harry coming up to you and yelling at you during supper? I wanted to hurt him, Ginny. He had no right to do or say what he did to you.   
  
  
  
Ginny, I don't know what is going on between you and Harry, but whatever it is, I don't like it. I like you alot, Ginny, and I don't want you to get hurt, alright? So, if he ever does anything completely horrible to you, I want you to tell me, and I will hurt him. I won't stand for anything to hurt you. I'm always here for you to talk to.  
  
Sincerely,  
  
Gregory  
  
Ginny was crying by the time she finished reading his letter. She had never meant to hurt Gregory by avoiding him, she was merely trying to keep herself out of a whole lot of big trouble. Greogory had said so himself, he didn't want her to get hurt. Yet, she had hurt him. She hadn't meant to, but lots of things happen that one doesn't mean to happen. For instance, one can tease a peer without meaning for that peer to go out and commit suicide, but that peer could be in a slump and go out and do just that. One never knows.  
  
Of course, Gregory wasn't going to go out and commit suicide. Not yet, at least.  
  
Anyways, Ginny got out a quill and a sheet of parchment and wrote a letter back to Gregory. Even if suicide wasn't on Gregory's mind, it very well might have been, and she didn't want anything horrible happening to him, so she wrote him just in case. Her letter was as follows:  
  
-Dear Gregory,  
  
Oh, Gregory, I'm so sorry I've been neglecting you lately, it's just I feel that I should be studying for exams extra-early this year, and they've been taking up so much of my time. I'll tell you what. This weekend is a Hogsmead weekend, so everyone will be in Hogsmead. If you would meet me out on the lawn at one o'clock, I will be there, and we can catch up. Send your response by owl post, and I will talk to you then.  
  
  
  
Love,  
  
Ginny  
  
Ginny sighed as she rolled up the piece of parchment and handed it to her brother's owl, Pigwidgeon (whom she had named). She watched the hyperactive bird fly away hooting madly, and wondered if he'd actually make it to Gregory. She knew that she had not even mentioned Harry in her letter to Gregory, and she had done it intentionally. She didn't want Gregory attacking Harry, goodness knows it would just cause more trouble for them all. It might mean the end of her friendship with Gregory. So she kept quiet.  
  
When Gregory recieved the letter from Ginny, he was extatic. He immediately scribbled a letter out to Ginny saying that he would be out on the lawn at one o'clock on Saturday afternoon, right by their oak. He would wait impatiently for Saturday to come so he could talk to Ginny again. He gave the note to undersized hooty owl, gave it a pat on the head, then sent it out back to Ginny.  
  
As he watched the little owl fly unsteadily back towards Gryffindor Tower, he wondered if the owl belonged to Ginny, and if so, why she picked out such an annoying little creature.  
  
Throughout the whole of the upcoming week, Ginny walked unsteadily from class to class. She wondered why she even dared to think about being able to meet Gregory out on the lawn without Harry either finding out or holding her up. What would Gregory do if Ginny just didn't show up? Would he suspect Harry and go after him, or would he think that Ginny didn't want to spend time with him anymore and leave her? She couldn't bear the thought. She would just have to hope for the best.  
  
When Saturday finally came, the morning hours flew by until it was finally one o'clock. As she had hoped, Harry, Hermione and Ron had headed out to Hogsmeade earlier that morning, and the common room was deserted. Just in case, Ginny grabbed a cloak and wrapped it around her, lest someone see her from a window and recognize her and tell Harry. That would be just what she needed. So she headed out onto the lawn, by their oak tree. As promised, there sat Gregory, eagerly awaiting her arrival. Ginny smiled cautiously at him as she sat down beside him.  
  
  
  
"I- I thought you might not come," Ginny said.  
  
"Why would you ever think that I might miss a chance to be around you?"  
  
Gregory's gentle words soothed her. "Because of the way I have been treating you lately. I'm sorry, it's just I'm terrified of exams and I have been holing myself up in the library studying for them."  
  
  
  
Gregory nodded, though the doubt showed on his face, he would not openly state that he did not trust her. "It's alright. I know what you mean. If you want, I can help you with the Potions, it's my best subject."  
  
Ginny's eyes pleaded thanks and she said, "Oh, thank you. I have been particularly aware that Snape has been dropping huge hints on awful stuff that'll be in the exam. Would you mind answering some of my questions?"  
  
And so the rest of the afternoon was spent as a study session. Ginny wished fervently that she could tell Gregory what really had been going on in her life, but she knew that he would just lose his temper and hurt Harry. That would merely get her in more trouble with him, and she knew that she was in enough trouble as it was.  
  
At about four o'clock, Ginny knew that Harry and his friends would be returning from Hogsmeade soon, so she told Gregory that she had to get back to her dormitory. Thanking him for his help, she stood up, but he reached up and grabbed her hand, gently pulling her back down beside him.  
  
"Ginny," he said, leaning forward and placing his lips upon hers. "Ginny, I love you." Ginny felt her heart melt at those four simple words, and she found that she was close to tears.  
  
"I- I love you, too, Gregory," she choked out quietly, admitting the truth as he placed his hands around her waist and kissed her once more. Ginny buried her face in his shoulder as he placed his chin atop her head.  
  
"Ginny, I need you in my life, I need you so much." He knew that this was nothing but the truth, that he could not live without her, would not live without her. "If you hadn't come into my life, I don't know what would become of me," he said, stating the simple truth.  
  
By now the tears were rolling freely down Ginny's face. "Me, neither," she breathed. Just then she wanted to concentrate on nothing but being in Gregory's arms, feeling his breath upon her scalp as he kissed her hair. "Don't leave me, Gregory," she said once again. "Don't ever leave me here alone."  
  
  
  
Gregory closed his eyes as he was overcome by emotions. "I promise Ginny, I will never leave you without someone to be there for you."  
  
Suddenly, Ginny pulled away from her magnificent world, knowing that if anyone caught them like that, they would be in deep trouble. She hated to leave Gregory like that, but she had to go, otherwise they might actually get caught. She told Gregory this, and he nodded, understanding. They both stood up, and Gregory pulled her close to him, kissing her.  
  
  
  
"I count the hours until we meet again," he whispered, and Ginny knew that if she stayed there too long, looking into his soft brown eyes that she would be lost to the world and no one would ever see her again. One last kiss passed between the two young lovers, and then Ginny hurried back to her world, and Gregory to his.  
  
Ginny was relieved that when she headed back up to the Gryffindor Tower, she found that she had beaten Harry back to what she might call home. He would not know that she had not been in the tower that day while he was gone. Ginny hurried up to her dormitory to get her notes for her classes to bring down to a table where Harry might find her whence he returned, studying.   
  
When Harry got back from Hogsmeade, he was obviously too tired from shopping to even notice Ginny, and it was quite alright with her. Hermione smiled at her, sitting down adjacent to her at the table.  
  
"Have a good time studying?" she asked quietly, winking.  
  
Ginny smiled and she knew that Hermione knew what she had done in their absence. "The best," she remarked quietly, a subtle smile spreading across her face.   
  
Hermione stood up, speaking loudly, "Well, Ginny, I think you are going to be very well prepared for those exams in June."   
  
Ginny thanked Hermione for caring with her eyes, and then returned to studying. Life was not so bad after all that she had been through. She had someone to live for, and though Harry could stop her heart from beating, there was no spell or attack that could start her hungry heart from loving. Not a soul would keep her away from her Gregory, not even Harry Potter. 


End file.
